


Waiting room

by redpunda15



Series: Hospital [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Angst, Comfort, Friendship, Gen, Some angst, Some sadness, bonding? as in...friendship? idk, sort of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-13
Updated: 2016-03-13
Packaged: 2018-05-26 11:55:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6237619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redpunda15/pseuds/redpunda15
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alya was in critical condition, and it was all her fault. How could she forgive herself? Marinette is trying to cope with the thought of her best friend hurt when Nino comes along and tells her it will be okay. Will it, though?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Waiting room

**Author's Note:**

> Rated Teen Audiences and Up for mild language and kind of depressing thoughts.

“Tikki?” Marinette’s wobbly voice whispered out quietly in the silent waiting room. The only sound emanating from the room was the continuous ticking of the clock.

The kwami jumped slightly, looking up at distraught her chosen who was staring solemnly at the pale walls. Tikki withdrew from her spot inside of Marinette’s purse, glancing around slightly to make sure no one was watching. Seeing no one, the kwami floated silently to her shoulder, resting gently there to avoid upsetting the visibly shaken teenager.

Marinette’s bloodshot eyes remained plastered to the ghastly white walls. Her dried tears had left shiny trails that painted their way down her cheeks. Her face was flushed with lingering sorrow, but her eyes were void of any emotions.

“Why couldn’t I save her?” Marinette’s voice was hoarse and scratchy. She swallowed the thick emotions that were almost choking her.

Tikki was shocked, eyes widening at the girl’s defeated words.

“What do you mean, Marinette? You did save her.”

Marinette shook her head slowly, a fresh batch of tears springing into her eyes but not yet falling. Her shoulders started trembling, and Marinette found herself pressing her fingers tightly to her lips in a desperate attempt to stop the cry that wanted to wrench free from her throat.

“N-No.” Marinette gasped out from behind her hand. The teenager’s whole body began shaking as a lump began to rise up, threatening to choke her.

“I didn’t. I should have protected her, should have done _better._ She is hurt because I wasn’t fast enough. She shouldn’t have even _been there!_ ”

“Marinette, you know how Alya can be,” The kwami flew up from Marinette’s shoulder, hovering in front of her face to pat her cheek. Her words were soft, but firm, as she tried to rationalize with her chosen, feeling her distress. “She just was trying to—”

“ _Ladybug_ should have protected her!” Marinette all but bellowed out, her face turning an unnatural shade of red, a horrifying contrast to her previously pale skin. Rage filled every ounce of her being only to turn into a bitter self-loathing. She dropped her hands from her face and allowed them to clench tightly in front of her. The teen could feel her nails digging into the soft flesh of her palm, and Marinette used her physical pain in an attempt to desperately quell the emotional pain inside of her, only letting the horrible emotions fuel the raging fire inside of her.

“Ladybug should have made her run away. She should have made sure that she was safe instead of ignoring her. Alya is a citizen! Citizens come first! Ladybug should have— I should have—”

Marinette broke off her words as the sobs released from her mouth. All of her anger towards herself spilling from her lips.

“If I wasn’t so caught up in the akuma, I could have seen her! I could have gotten her out of there! But I didn’t and she got hurt! I basically ignored my best friend to fight the villain. I wasn’t even thinking that she would do something so crazy like that! She was looking for Marinette—for _me_ , and I…”

Marinette froze, her words dying on her trembling lips as she was faced with the horrible realization:

_It was all her fault._

_“_ Marinette, you know that isn’t true! If it weren’t for you and Chat Noir, the café would have been destroyed! You saved the day.”

Tikki’s words fell on deaf ears. No amount of coaxing or pleading from her tiny, red friend could console Marinette, nor could it let her forget just where she was…or why she was there.

_It was Ladybug’s fault._

_It was Marinette’s fault._

_It was **her** fault._

Marinette felt another wave of guilt crash through her, and she sunk low in her seat as her anger vanished, only to be replaced with deep sorrow.

“I am so sorry, Alya. I should have protected you.” The girl whispered out into the silent room, ignoring her magical guardian’s words.

The red kwami opened her mouth to console the girl, when she suddenly saw someone walking through the hallway towards them. Tikki let out a small squeak and zipped down into Marinette’s purse to avoid being seen. Big, blue eyes recognized the newcomer instantly.

“Marinette?”

The girl in question looked up at the new voice. She was met with a pair of worried brown eyes. She saw another emotion in there— _was it relief?_ She felt herself form a small smile, but it didn’t feel real to her. She could only hope that he believed it was.

“Nino, hey.”

Nino walked up to where Marinette was sitting, his shoulders slumped. His headphones were hanging loosely around his neck, and there was no music emanating from them. He cautiously looked up at the clock, his mind at a slow crawl as he tried to process everything that had gone on that afternoon, not really seeing the time that the analog clock displayed. He knew it was the evening now, and he briefly wondered how long she had been sitting there.

This was his second time at the hospital, the first time was when he was brought in with everyone else that was present at the site to have any possible injuries checked, but that was hours ago. His parents had come to take him home not long after arriving, having been checked and cleared to go home. He found himself returning to the hospital now because he needed to get out, to check on Alya and Marinette…because being at home was killing him. It had taken a lot of begging to his parents to have them allow him to go back, but the anxiety about his friends was not letting him settle at home. It was suffocating him, and he needed to go back to the hospital. Knowing that Alya was still there was unnerving to say the least.

He and Adrien had been in touch, relaying any updates that they might have heard about Alya (which was none on either of their parts). The best friends had called and texted each other as the afternoon crept into the evening because, frankly, they were in shock. Everything that had happened had felt like a blur. Nino wouldn’t admit out loud that he had needed Adrien as comfort. _‘Things are going to be okay, Nino.’_ Adrien had said, but damn him if he wasn’t scared shitless.

This wasn’t some simple _escape-from-the-akuma-site-and-be-all-okay_ kind of situation. No, Alya had been caught in the crossfire. Hell, both Adrien and he had been beaten up by debris and damage. No one really knew how Marinette was doing. It had never happened before, and Nino was not keen on coping with that anxiety alone, hence the reason that best friends exist. Adrien was there, and that was enough for Nino.

He knew Alya was out of commission at the moment (as much as that revelation hurt him to admit), and he knew that Adrien was battered, but safe in his fortress of a home, but neither of them were able to get in touch with Marinette. She wasn’t responding to texts or calls. Nino knew she was at least safe, having seen her in his first trip to the hospital, but she was being examined by nurses and he did not get the chance to see her. Her condition was unclear, and it made the teenaged boys sick with worry. _What if she was hurt like Alya, and we didn’t know it? What if…?_ He and Adrien were both concerned, the model possibly more so, and Nino couldn’t help but tease the blond in attempt to quell the fear in his heart.

Seeing Marinette sitting alone in the waiting room, staring at the walls with a lost expression—it made such a wave of relief crash through him that he was surprised at how quickly the burden on his shoulders seemed to lift at her presence. At least Marinette was okay.

“D-Do you want to sit down?”

Nino snapped his attention back to his friend, chasing away the lingering thoughts to return a smile to her. He could see the horrible sadness in her pale, blue eyes, and he felt his heart clench. Marinette was always an open book to the group of friends.

“Yeah…sure.”

Nino slumped into the waiting room chair next to her, clenching his phone in front of him, an action that did not go unnoticed.

“Have you heard anything from Adrien? Is he okay?”

The teenaged boy looked at her briefly before nodding, finding that action the only thing he could do without breaking down. He watched as Marinette shifted in her seat to better face him, and Nino almost found himself smiling. If only Adrien could see how much Marinette really cared for him… Nino knew that she was more worried at the moment than love struck. Hell, he had been worried too. The four of them had gotten split up, and Nino would have been lying if he had said that he hadn’t been worried that Adrien had not answered his calls until an hour after mysteriously disappearing after the akuma’s initial attack, but it wasn’t Adrien’s fault that the group had gotten split up. Adrien had insisted that he was okay and at home safe. Nino had no idea as to how, though.

To be honest, the whole ordeal was stressful. Not that Nino and his friends haven’t been faced with an akuma attack before. No, that was quite the opposite. The group always found themselves in the midst of trouble, and having another akuma show up was something that was begrudgingly normal in their lives.

No, what was stressful was the fact that the shyest of their party had run off only moments before the akuma had arrived, and her three remaining friends felt a lump of panic at the slim possibility that she had become the victim, although in hindsight, that thought seemed stupid. That fear escalated when no one of their group could get in touch with her. Alya had gone looking for her, but…

Alya got hurt. Badly.

For a moment, a tiny, _miniscule_ moment, Nino was angry and found himself wanting to place the blame on someone, someone he knew didn’t deserve it.

The teenager gripped his phone tighter, and he saw Marinette wince.

“His father is super pissed that he got hurt, but—”

“Adrien got _hurt!_?” Marinette’s shrill cry echoes around them, and Nino recognized instant panic display across her face.

Another flash of anger shot through him, and Nino was unsure as to who he was angry with.

“It wasn’t anything serious,” _Like Alya’s situation,_ he added silently in his head, “Just a few scrapes and bruises. Like us.”

Marinette visibly deflated, eyes downcast. She had caught on to Nino’s clipped tone and his silent implication.

“O-Oh.”

Nino had sported a few scrapes and bruises, the akuma being relentless in destroying everything in sight. He also knew that Marinette had to be injured, being so close to the attack, but he did not know the extent of her injuries. He knew that she had been checked over by nurses, and he could only imagine seeing her complain the whole time, hating to have people fuss over her because her _friends needed help more that she did._ Nino knew that she would put her friends first. It was just her nature to put others before herself, and Marinette was _fiercely_ protective of their little group, but this was _serious_. Alya, creator of the _Ladyblog_ and someone who basically jumped _head-first_ into danger to get a glimpse of her heroes, had noticed that the akumas had been getting more and more dangerous.

It was only a matter of time until…

“Yeah, his father had to lecture him on hanging with a bunch of _bad influences_ like us and decided to ground him for a month, Adrien says.”

Marinette grew red in the face, and Nino couldn’t tell what was swirling in that head of hers. Knowing Marinette, it was a mix of anger and guilt, but Nino hoped that it wasn’t the latter. It had been her and Alya’s idea to go out to that café today. It had been Marinette who had run off in fear of talking to her crush. Marinette was the one Alya went to look for when the akuma—

_No!_

Nino stopped his thoughts instantly, guilt seizing him. How could he pin the blame on Marinette, sweet and loveable _Marinette_? How big of a jerk could he _be?_ She had done _nothing_ wrong.

The teenager had been reprimanding himself for his thoughts that he had missed what his friend had said. He was met with a waiting look, and Nino flushed with embarrassment that he had not been paying attention to what she had said.

“I’m sorry, Mari, I spaced out for a sec. What did you say?” Nino tried to laugh off his embarrassment and lingering guilt with a wave of a hand, his movements followed by her weary, blue eyes.

Marinette’s brow furrowed for a moment before she repeated her statement.

“I said it isn’t fair that Adrien has to be punished for something like that.” Her voice was firm and held a tone that Nino recognized when she went toe-to-toe with Chloe.

The teen almost smiled when he realized that she wasn’t blaming herself, even though a horrible voice in his mind screamed how much of a hypocrite he was being. Marinette always put others first, even if that meant putting herself in the line of fire, but Nino was relieved. Marinette was just angry with Adrien’s father.

Well, she would have to get in line.

“Yeah, well, you know how his dad can be. The dude is totally overprotective. I don’t know how Adrien can stand it.”

Marinette hummed in agreeance, her eyes flickering back to the white walls across from them. Nino, remembering where they were, placed his hand on Marinette’s shoulder. Nino always knew he had large hands, but when in comparison to Marinette’s back, his hands seemed huge.

“Have you heard anything new about Alya?”

Marinette flinched under his hand, and Nino almost removed it in fear that he had hurt her. It remained planted in its spot, though, knowing that she needed the physical contact more than anything.

“No, not really. Her parents left to go be with her when my parents left an hour o-or two ago, and only family can visit the ICU. Th-They will move her to a better room when she becomes more st-stable. I d-don’t know all of the details, I am sorry.” The girl’s voice was thick with emotion, and it wobbled a bit.

Nino was afraid she would start to cry, and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders in support.

“Don’t be sorry. Mari, I think that it’s time that you head home. You have been here for _hours._ You said your parents left already, so they did show up?”

Marinette nodded.

“They came in to see me when we were first brought here. They wanted to take me home as soon as I was cleared to leave, but... When they heard about…Alya, we stayed with her family here until doctors said that there was no more immediate dangers with her condition, although she is still…unstable.” Marinette took in a shaky breath, feeling the weight of their situation resting on her shoulders. “I couldn’t leave her, though. My parents tried to take me home, but I just couldn’t go. My parents didn’t want me to stay by myself, but they had to go back to the bakery. I promised them I would be fine, and that I would come straight home as soon as I felt ready.”

Marinette paused, and Nino waited patiently for her to finish, seeing emotions he could not name in her eyes. “I know I can’t see her, b-but… I just _can’t_ leave her alone, Nino. Th-This is all _my fault_.”

Her words hit Nino like a punch to the gut.

He looked down on the girl, pulling her closer to him. He could feel her being to shake.

“Mari, this isn’t your fault.” Nino felt fear mixed with guilt creep into his bones as she began to cry. That little voice in his mind was taunting him again. _Hypocrite._ He rubbed her back soothingly, but it did nothing to console her. If anything, her wails got louder as she curled into herself and away from him.

Nino found himself floundering. Alya was normally the one to be with Marinette. He knew Marinette got upset, from what their blogging friend would tell him, but he had never _seen_ her get upset. She always tried to hide the sad side of herself from him and Adrien, probably more so from Adrien. Now, with Alya in an unstable condition and Adrien stuck in his hell-hole of a home, Nino was the only one that could possibly help Marinette.

And that idea scared him. It scared the hell out of him.

Sure, people got upset. He had had plenty of opportunities to help his best friend, son of the most well-known and stuck up fashion designers of all of Paris. Adrien had so much to deal with at home, and Nino would be the one that he would turn to. Hell, Adrien had even cried a few times, _not that he would tell anyone of course._

But this was _Marinette._

Strong, stubborn, fearless Marinette, who never backed down from a challenge, _unless that challenge included proclaiming your feelings for a certain Adrien Agreste._ He had never seen Marinette so much as sniffle from sadness, no matter how ruthless Chloe could be. She would always swallow her feelings and fight _back._ She would be kind to everyone, regardless of who they were and she wore her heart on her sleeve. Marinette never showed weakness, but instead showed a refining and never ending strength; it was one of the reasons he had had a tiny crush on her two years ago. The teenager sighed. Nino didn’t know how to help her. He had never seen this side of his friend before, and the fear that he would only make things worse flooded him like a tidal wave.

He felt _horrible._

He had thought awful things of her, used her as an outlet for his own anger…and here she was, putting all of the blame on herself. Nino felt like the lowest scum of the earth, and seeing her cry only made him hate himself more.

“Shit, Mari…Hey, it’s going to be okay. I-It’s not your fault. Shit happens, ya know?”

Nino grappled for the right words to say, but felt himself getting anxious as she continued to cry. He didn’t know how to handle this. He didn’t know how to make Marinette feel better. _Alya_ always made her feel better, _but Alya wasn’t there._

Nino felt like crying himself.

“I-It’s my f-fault. It’s all m-my _fault!_ ” Marinette cried into her hands, muffling her words.

_If only he knew._ A voice chanted in her head. _If only he knew how much it was her fault._

He would hate her, she knew that without a fact. They all would. Nino, Adrien … _Alya._

Oh, how Alya would truly hate her.

How could he explain to her best friend that she had run off to the bathroom because she was nervous about making a fool of herself in front of Adrien? Well, Alya knew as much, and it wasn’t uncommon for her to freak out in front of the model, but today had been especially stressful. Her nerves were getting to her, making her feel sick, so she dismissed herself to the bathroom to take a few minutes to calm down.

Then she heard the explosion.

How could Marinette explain to Alya that she had left the safety of the bathroom to go and fight an akuma—to go and protect everyone? Surely that would not have ended well in discussion. As far as anyone knew, Marinette was a civilian, not a superhero. Marinette wanted to keep it that way to protect everyone. Marinette was a civilian who just happened to run off and transform into the very popular Ladybug. If Marinette had not been so wrapped up in fending off the akuma to lead it away from the café, she might have realized that her friends must have been worried. But Ladybug didn’t think along those lines, for once. She was more hell-bent on saving as many civilians as she could.

When Chat Noir arrived, Ladybug had felt relief. Her partner was there, and they could do this.

They did do it. They defeated the akuma, but not without Alya getting hurt. That destroyed Marinette. She left her friends to save them, but Alya was not going to abandon her friend—who she thought was trapped or hurt somewhere—her friend who was fighting to protect them. Alya didn’t know that, but…

If she did, she would not be please. Marinette lied to her. Marinette kept the biggest secret of _her life_ from her best friend. Marinette was Ladybug, superhero of Paris. Alya was Ladybug’s _biggest_ fan and blog-owner of the _Ladyblog._ How could Marinette explain that she didn’t want to keep her secret, but needed to? To protect her.

Marinette would do anything to protect Alya, but would Alya understand that?

She would be angry, very, very angry. _‘She is my idol! I look up to her!’_ Marinette could hear the words of her friend bounce around in her head. _‘She is graceful and powerful and strong, Mari! No one can defeat her and Chat Noir!’_

What would Alya say if she found out that her idol was nothing more than the clumsy girl that was her best friend? Marinette couldn’t bring herself to think of the horrible truths that would spill from her best friend’s lips. Marinette could handle anything, but if she lost Alya—if Alya hated her…Marinette would surely lose herself in the sorrow. Alya was her best friend, her _everything._ Alya has been there through everything. If she had found out that Ladybug was a no one in real life…

Marinette shuddered through her tear as she imagined what her best friend would say when she found out the truth. Alya would scream at her, demanding to know why she lied, why she kept it a secret.

_Alya would never be able to trust her again._

Marinette felt her tears suddenly stop as that thought danced on her brain over and over. It crashed into her mind again and again like a flood. It made her heart unnaturally heavy, and it suddenly felt harder to breathe. The teen found herself biting her lip, almost to the point that it drew blood, to get rid of that horrible ache in her chest.

She felt Nino tense next to her, his arm tightening slightly to bring her closer to him.

“M-Mari? You okay? Please don’t cry. It’s o-okay.”

The teenager sniffled loudly, sitting up, only to be crushed into her friend’s embrace. He was trembling as he whispered apologies to her, his own voice heavy with emotion. He was trying to comfort her, and that thought almost made her smile. Nino was her good friend, and she loved the fact that he would always look out for her, like a big brother. He joked one time that she could probably beat him up, and she laughed along with him, secretly thinking that he had no idea how right that thought was. He was the jokester of the group, and he always found ways to make them laugh, even if her nervousness was the butt of most of his jokes. It was all in good faith, though, and he knew better to _never_ crack one of those with a certain blond model around. She would definitely beat him to a bloody pulp if he embarrassed her further in front of Adrien.

Alya, though, would never be that merciful and always made her embarrassment known to the model.

It was always a disaster, in Marinette’s opinion.

But Alya wasn’t here, neither was Adrien, and while the thought that two of their group were not here hurt inconsiderably, Marinette knew that she wasn’t completely alone. Even through all of this hell she felt, _Nino was still there._ He was right there, hugging her, making sure that she was okay, comforting her _._ She felt alone, sure. She felt the whole world on her shoulders, the guilt of what she had done weighing down on her like an anvil, and she knew that feeling would not disappear anytime soon…

But he was _trying_.

Marinette turned suddenly, returning Nino’s embrace, as a small smile graced her lips. Her tear-stained cheeks began to dry, and the emptiness in her chest felt smaller. It still hurt, but at least knowing that Nino was here with her, trying to make sure that she knew that he was there for her—that she wasn’t alone…it was enough.

“Thank you, N-Nino.”

The boy in question felt a flood of relief as she whispered those words to him. It was going to be okay, he reasoned with himself. They could do this. Marinette was going to be okay. He was okay. Adrien and Alya were going to be okay. Nothing could stop their _Fearsome Foursome_.

Nino smiled at the memory of his deciding of that group name a few months prior. Adrien had chuckled, raising a fist to do their signature fist-bump in appreciation of the goofy name for their goofy group. Alya had groaned. Loudly. She then proceeded to attack him with the library book she had been reading, calling him a ‘Dumb DJ’ with no creativity. She was held back by a giggling Marinette. ‘ _It isn’t as bad as it could be, Alya.’_ Dummy DJ, Alya had growled. He is nothing but a Dummy DJ, and their group was _not_ going to be named something stupid like ‘ _Fearsome Foursome’._ Stupid? As if. Fearsome Foursome was the _perfect_ name for them. Their group not only consisted of a talented DJ (if he did say so himself), but also a _very_ famous, very _wealthy_ model, the best blogger in all of Paris (who was very close with a certain speckled super-hero, might he add), and a rising designer who make kick-ass desserts for them. But Alya was too close-minded for his antics, and he knew teasing her about it would only get him pummeled.

Good thing Marinette could save him from his beautiful and wild girlfriend.

Well, she wasn’t his girlfriend… _yet._ But he was going to change that as soon as she was better.

He heard the clock ticking above them quietly, a sound that brought him back to reality. They were in the waiting room. Alya was in critical condition. Marinette was there, but barely holding herself together. He was…dealing, somehow. Man, he wished Adrien was here. Not that he hated that it was just Marinette and him, but the idea of having a third member seemed to be hopeful. Maybe if they were all there, it wouldn’t feel so heavy in this silent room. Maybe then, it wouldn’t feel like their group was falling apart. Deep down, Nino knew that the Fearsome Foursome was far from falling apart, but with the situation presented to them…

It sure as hell felt like it.

_But they would be okay._

Nino held Marinette for a long time, glad that he was able to bring her the tiniest bit of comfort. The air felt lighter, suddenly. With uncertainty still lingering in the air around them, Nino felt very optimistic. He had to, though.

If he wasn’t smiling and promising that it would be fine, he knew for sure that he would be crying right now.

He still wished Adrien was there. He needed his best friend. A bitter part of him reminded him that Marinette’s best friend was unable to comfort him, and he felt guilty for being selfish enough to wish the model was there with them.

Speaking of the blond…

Nino looked at his phone over Marinette’s shoulder and checked to see if Adrien had left any messages. The model did, indeed, leave him a few messages, and Nino couldn’t help but smile at the reassuring fact that Adrien was okay. Nino couldn’t imagine the horrible idea of having both Alya _and_ Adrien in the hospital. He wouldn’t be able to handle that stress or that fear.

Glancing down at Marinette, who still had her face pressed in his chest, sniffling, Nino couldn’t begin to think about how she would take that kind of news. The love of her life and her best friend both in critical condition…The girl would _never_ forgive herself.

_But no…_ Adrien was _okay._

**[Hey Nino, you at the hospital? <sent 18:30>]**

**[Have you heard anything new? <sent 18:33>]**

**[Is Marinette there? <sent 18:45>]**

**[Is she okay? How is she taking all of this? <sent 18:45>]**

**[I hate being stuck here. I feel so helpless. <sent 18:50>]**

**[Nino? You there? <sent 19:00>]**

Not only was Adrien okay, but he was also very clingy. Nino knew that though. The model literally lived in a mansion by himself, with a crappy excuse of a father. Of course he would spam message him. Nino was totally cool with it. The two of them would text each other for _hours_. After school. After practice. After model sessions. At night. In the morning. At random. It didn’t matter.

The model was clingy, but Nino loved that about him. They were best buds, after all.

Nino shifted his arms so that way he could text over Marinette’s head, afraid to disrupt her. He knew that she needed this comfort, and he didn’t care how many texts he got, he was not going to deny her that support. And hell, maybe he needed this too.

[sup dude. srry i didnt txt u. things kind of got hectic. <sent 19:15>]

Adrien’s response was _immediate,_ and Nino could only wonder if Adrien was at home staring at his phone, waiting for him to respond.

**[Hectic? What happened? <sent 19:15>]**

[just…dealing, ya know? mari is here but shes a mess. shes been here for hours. <sent 19:16>]

There was a pause for a moment, and Nino found himself staring at the phone screen. Marinette shifted underneath him, and he moved his arms out of the way to allow her room. She sat up, wiping at her face with the back of her hand. Her makeup was smeared and her eyes were beyond red and puffy. The evidence of her pain and sorrow still lingering in her eyes.

“Is everything okay?” She asked quietly, and Nino cursed himself for not asking her that himself.

“Yeah, just talking to Adrien. The guy left me like 5 messages, and I totally forgot to text him that I made it here in one piece.”

Marinette’s eyes lit up, and the teenaged boy was so thankful that in that moment, her pain and guilt was replaced with happiness at the mention of her crush. _Oh, she had it so bad._

“Is he okay? How is he feeling?”

“I don’t know, he seemed pretty good earlier, but I can check again. He was worried. We both were. We couldn’t reach you.” Guilt flashed across her features as she turned from him to look down into her purse. He couldn’t see over her shoulder, but he waited as she shifted around in her bag.

“It’s not here…” She whispered in disbelief. “Where is it? I thought I had it.”

“Maybe it was left at the café. We can check there tomorrow for it if you want.” Nino spoke cautiously, feeling the shift in the air.

Marinette gave a small hum in response. Nino found himself releasing a breath he had no idea he had been holding, realizing that she was not going to start crying again. The teen glanced back down at his phone.

**[Is Marinette okay? God, this must be killing her. Tell her I said that I hope she is feeling okay. <sent 19:18>]**

[its hard seeing her like this dude. never seen her so upset. makes me feel like total shit. <sent 19:20>]

[i will but idk how she will react. knowing mari tho she might xplode ;) <sent 19:20>]

**[Why would she explode? O.o <sent 19:20>] **

Nino thought about telling Marinette what Adrien had said, but he wasn’t sure how well she would take it. He wasn’t kidding when he told Adrien that she might explode.

“What did he say?” Marinette asked quickly, seeing Nino smile softly at his phone before turning to her.

“Well, I didn’t get to ask him yet, I was responding to his hoard of texts from before.” Nino paused, debating for a moment on whether or not he relay the message. After quick debate though, he decided to screw it. “He told me to tell you that he hopes you feel better. He asked me to ask if you were okay.”

As expected, Marinette reacted comically. Her eyes widened quickly as a blush shot over her cheeks. Her jaw dropped in response, making her look like a gaping fish. Nino laughed, the sound foreign to the quiet room. Immediately Marinette shup her mouth and withdrew into herself in embarrassment, but not before whispering out that she would be okay. Nino clapped her shoulder gently with his hand, a wide grin on his face.

“No need to get all flustered, Mari. It’s only _Adrien.”_ He knew he was teasing her, and she knew it too, judging by the sharp glare that was directed at him after that comment. “What?” He acted innocently, laughing again when she punched him lightly in the shoulder.

Man, it felt good to laugh.

[she is more worried about you man. asks how you r feeling. <sent 19:21>]

[and dude srsly? <sent 19:22>]

A few minutes passed as Nino waited to see what the blond would say. Marinette had seemed to have forgotten their little trifle and seemed to be lost in thought as she stared at the walls again, and Nino had no doubts that the memories of the day were playing in her head. He knew they were replaying in his.

**[Of course she would be more worried about me. Typical Marinette. I am sorry that I had to leave you alone, Nino. <sent 19:30>]**

[yeah, right? and dude, dont be sorry. ur dad is just being ur dad. not ur fault. <sent 19:30>]

**[Still…It isn’t fair to you or Marinette. I should at least be there. <sent 19:31>]**

“Marinette? Nino?”

Both teens jumped in their seats as a new voice broke the silence of the quiet waiting room. Both in question turned to see Alya’s mother walking towards them, her appearance disheveled. Her eyes were trained wearily on the two of them, her eyebrows furled together in concern.

“What are you two still doing here? It’s late. Marinette, I thought you went home with your parents?”

The girl in question bowed her head in shame. She opened her mouth to apologize for sticking around before closing it with an audible _snap._ Marinette’s lip trembled as she looked back at the adult, internally fighting to keep everything together. Seeing Alya’s mother brought a fresh new wave of pain. It reminded her that Alya was hurt and that it was her fault. Her gaze connected with Madame Césaire’s, and she felt tears burn in her eyes. The older woman’s worried gaze softened.

“H-How is sh-she doing?” Marinette asked quietly, her gaze locked with that of her friend’s mother.

Madame Césaire sighed heavily as she stared at her daughter’s best friend. There was no sense in lying to the girl. Not to Marinette.

“We haven’t heard anything new. She is still unstable, but…” the woman trailed off slightly, a hopeful look creeping into her eyes, and it was aided with a gentle smile. “They say that if she can stabilize, then the chances of her recovery will be high. We just have to think positively, okay? She will be fine.”

Marinette made a mournful sound in the back of her throat as she slowly absorbed the new information about her best friend. She wanted to let her tears fall, but she was honestly tired of crying. Alya wouldn’t want her to cry. Alya always hated seeing her cry.

Marinette nodded as she slowly smiled, imagining her friend chastising her for getting upset. She could just see the red-head shaking her head, saying something along the lines of _what am I going to do with you, girl?_ Some part of Marinette wanted to scream and run, to hide away from the hospital in guilt of what she had done, but another part of Marinette was trying to be strong for her best friend. Alya would not be happy if she knew that her friend was beating herself up for nothing. No matter how many times Marinette would say that something this serious would be counted as _nothing,_ she knew that her best friend would brush this off and laugh. _‘I could take shit like this any day, Mari. Akumas can’t bring me down.’_

“Alya is a fighter.” Nino supplied. He smiled at the adult and his friend. “Hell, she can stare down in the face of any evil and basically tell it to ‘go to hell’, so she is going to be fine. I know it!”

Marinette felt her smile get wider as she suddenly imagined Alya shaking a clenched fist at Hawk Moth and screaming at him to go to hell. Knowing Alya, though, she would add plenty of…lovely four letter words to make sure he got the point. A giggle escaped from her lips.

It was like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Somehow, imagining her friend chewing out Hawk Moth made everything better, and Marinette was glad for the tiny reprieve in her emotions. It felt good.

“Could you imagine Alya, though? Going up to Hawk Moth and basically telling him off?” Marinette couldn’t stop her laughter as she spoke, the image becoming funnier and funnier. Nino let out a hoot of laughter at the idea, clapping his hand to his knee. Even Madame Césaire was chuckling.

“Oh yeah,” Nino gasped out after a fit of laughter. “She would march right up to the poor guy and probably beat the shit out of him!”

Marinette’s vision was blurred with tears as she laughed harder, doubling over. Her friend could throw one hell of a right-hook. Imagining their friend using said hook on Hawk Moth… The Ladybug in Marinette would never let that happen, but Alya would sure as hell try.

The two teens suddenly found themselves telling interesting tales on how Alya would go about single-handedly defeating Hawk Moth. Both of them threw ridiculous accusations on how their determined friend would go about socking the villain, and every time, the two would find themselves laughing harder and harder, unable to control themselves. Madame Césaire, herself, found the interaction humorous.

After a few minutes, the two friends found their laughter winding down to giggles, and eventually subsiding.

Marinette, in that moment, felt better than she had all afternoon. Everything inside of her was suddenly calm. She no longer felt the turbulent negative emotions raging through her head, and she was glad. Now she was tired, very tired. Marinette looked at the clock, seeing that the time read 8:15 p.m.

Alya’s mother noticed the time as well and cleared her throat. The two looked at her.

“I think it is time for the two of you to head home, okay?”

Nino found himself nodding in agreement with the adult. He probably needed to head home to his parents. He knew Marinette needed to go home as well. She had been cooped up in this waiting room for too long.

“You’re right. I can take Marinette home so you can stay here with Alya.”

Madame Césaire nodded with a smile, noticing that the air in the room was so much lighter than when she had come in earlier. She was glad that the kids were feeling much better, both of them wearing genuine smiles. Alya had amazing friends.

“Well you two better head out then. Be safe, you hear?”

The two nodded vigorously and Marinette stood up to walk over to where she was seated. Alya’s mother found herself rising as well and opened her arms for the girl so they could embrace. The hug lasted a few second before Marinette pulled away with a bright smile. Alya’s mother couldn’t help but mirror that smile.

“It’s going to be okay.”

Madame Césaire watched as the two teenagers made their way out of the waiting room into the night, Marinette’s words echoing in her head. She couldn’t help the smile that spread on her face.

Everything was going to be fine, she just knew it.

**Author's Note:**

> First off, hello! How is everyone doing? This is my second work in Miraculous Ladybug.  
> This was more of a...coping chapter for me. I have been going through shit and decided to write an interaction between Nino and Marinette to kind of help me through what I am going through.  
> I imagine them to be very good friends, like the wing-man duo. [The bro-ship is strong with them]  
> But I think that Nino would definitely be there to comfort Marinette. They both love Alya.  
> I am thinking about adding another section to this in which we see Alya and Marinette talk it out (and possibly find out what happened in the akuma attack idk yet)  
> Thank you so much for reading this! Any feed back is good feed back!!!


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